There’s nothing better than a photo trip…

January 23, 2009

So why do I hate packing so much? 😉 I’m getting ready to travel to Miami for a wedding shoot and then hopping on board the Norwegian Pearl for a Western Caribbean cruise. Yep, some rest and relaxation while earning a living. Not too bad for a week of work! Clearly, the focus of the trip is the wedding. The couple is very laid back and really looking for a good time – not a stuffy wedding to say the least! The type of pictures they want is, of course, photo journalistic. That is the term in wedding photography and has been for a long time. Basically, keep your posed pictures to a minimum and focus on capturing the spontaneous events of the day. As a photographer you don’t want anyone to know you’re there as this will allow you to capture the “real” expressions and moments throughout the day. I’ll post some of my images (with the couple’s approval) when I get back.

Besides the wedding, my partner Jen and I will be looking to beef up RTP’s stock image portfolio with landscapes, wildlife and anything else we can capture. The ship stops in Roatan, Honduras, Belize, Cozumel and the cruise line’s private island. Most of the excursions we’re taking allow us to maximize our photographic potential and we’re looking forward to capturing some amazing scenes.

I received an interesting email the other day from one of the stock agencies I use. They were letting me know one of my images, a picture of a stethoscope in the shape of a heart, was used in a design contest submission. A little legwork and I found the image is being used on the front cover of a French novel, Un Cancer, mon amour by Biliki publishers. My French is a little rusty terrible so I’m not exactly sure what the novel is about besides someone’s fight against cancer, but it’s interesting to learn where some of my stock images are used. I haven’t found a good way to discover more of my images in the “real world”. If anyone knows how, I’d love to hear about it.

Another bit of news I somehow missed came from a fellow Nikonian, Tom Trujillo. On October 8th, 2008 he was with a group of fellow Nikon photographers in Curry Village in Yosemite National Park when a landslide occurred destroying cabins and tents in the village and causing minor injuries to some folks. Tom, instead of running away with everyone else, ran into the chaos and was able to pull a few children from the area. Check out his interview with FoxNews, an article in the LA Times and the writeup in the Nikonians eZine. His images were picked up by the Associated Press and published nationally. Way to go, Tom, not for the images (although national publication is very sweet!), but for your reaction to people in need. Nice work!

My suitcase is still open and unpacked with many of my clothes in the dryer. It’s going to be a long night. Stay tuned for some pictures when I return.